Investments in digital medicine and a new device for diabetics: week’s news in the industry

Investments in digital medicine and a new device for diabetics: week’s news in the industry

2019-01-18

How much has an inflow of investments in the U.S. digital medicine grown? Which country is developing a new device for diabetics and where is AI used for eye diseases detecting? Follow a week’s news digest for more details on these and other events in the medical realm.

Inflow of investments in the U.S. digital medicine grows in 2018

As reported by PwC and CB Insights, the results of the previous year showed that $8.6 billion was invested in the U.S. digital medicine, which is 21% more than in 2017.

Its share in the total volume of venture investments of $99.5 billion is estimated at 8.6%.

In 2018, several companies received considerable financing for the development of digital medicine. For example, Peloton that creates high-tech stationary bikes got $550 million. A startup Zymergen attracted $400 million for the creation of a microbe factory. SmileDirectClub that develops and sells systems for home teeth alignment and whitening received $380 million investments.

U.S. engineers develop an artificial pancreas

Engineers of the startup Beta Bionics are currently developing a bionic system iLet that performs the functions of a pancreas. In early January, this company completed another crowdfunding round. Beta Bionics attracted $63 million for the third testing phase and its certification by FDA (U.S. Food and Drug Administration).

An artificial pancreas is aimed at people suffering from type 1 diabetes. It is a two-section pump capable of inserting insulin and glucagon into a patient’s organism. A gadget works on an AI-enabled algorithm to detect the amount of agent material to be inserted.

New Chairman of Health Committee of Saint Petersburg

An acting Governor of Saint Petersburg Alexander Beglov signed an order appointing a Candidate of Medicine Dmitry Lisovets to the position of a Chairman of Health Committee of Saint Petersburg previously obtained by Mikhail Dubina.

Dmitry Lisovets is a lieutenant colonel of medical reserve and an army veteran. He graduated from the S. M. Kirov Military Medical Academy holding the Order of Lenin and the Red Banner. After military service, the doctor went on a postgraduate military course of this education establishment.

From 2006 to the appointment to the position of a Chairman of Health Committee, he worked as a Deputy Chief Doctor at the City Hospital No 40 of Saint Petersburg.

China uses AI for ocular diseases diagnosing

Last week, Deqing county hospital introduced a new system that helps detect retina diseases. Here, patients get free consultations with this device.

A new AI-powered gadget scans a human eye. Then, a system analyses received data and compiles research results. The product helps doctors diagnose diabetic retinopathy, glaucoma, and macular dystrophy.

The device was developed by Baidu experts and the Sun Yat-sen University of China. Currently, it is used in four hospitals of Deqing county.